A Girl and Her Hellhound
by ButterfliesforHeartbeats
Summary: "As the boys drove back to the bunker, they didn't say much. They were both too preoccupied with blind girls feeding their werewolf fathers silver and keeping hellhounds as pets for that." Lea (OC) is thrown into the supernatural world as the hunted, and goes to the Winchesters for help. Sam knows how it feels to be a grey area.
1. Chapter 1

"You boys are bloody brilliant, you know that?" Cocky, British, a little nasally - annoying and generally exactly where he didn't need to be - of course it was Crowley.

The Winchester brothers were in a house, cleaning up after fighting off a rogue werewolf. Classic hunt, really, which was nice. All of the anarchy, conspiracy theories, mental, emotional crap otherwise had been giving Dean a headache alcohol and coffee only made worse - and he wasn't sure how to deal with that exactly.

"Get lost," Dean offered succinctly. Crowley gave him a sarcastic wrinkle of his nose and proceeded to ignore him. Dean rolled his eyes, and Sam shrugged his shoulders and continued cleaning his knife.

"You two are missing something, of course," Crowley was muttering, wandering around the room until coming to a stop in front of the coat closet adjacent to the hall. "Aha," He looked back at them, the smug 'why didn't you think of this' look scrawled on his face as he flung the door open.

Inside the closet, on the floor with her arms wrapped around her knees, was a girl. She seemed to be about 18 years old, with short curly auburn hair highlighted almost white on top, and blacked out sunglasses over her eyes. She was sniffing a little, and shaking slightly, in a large sweater and slightly baggy jeans.

"It's about time," She said shakily, and paused. "Is it… is it over?" Sam immediately got up and approached her.

"You're Lea, aren't you? Um… His daughter?" She snorted when he hesitated, but nodded.

"Is it done?" She repeated. Sam bent down in front of her. With the glasses, he assumed she was blind, but it seemed as though she was looking directly at him.

"Yeah," He said gently. "So you knew…"

"He was a werewolf? Yeah. I've been putting silver shavings in his food and water for months - kept it weak, but… Well, I guess he couldn't hold it off forever." Dean looked over, surprised.

Sam sighed, watching her sympathetically. "Listen, why don't you come out of there?" He asked, extending his hand. She instantly shrunk away from it.

"No - no thanks, I'd rather… stay here for now." She said, folding in on herself.

"It's okay, we won't hurt you," Sam tried to reassure her. "My brother and I -"

"Are hunters, you're here to help, I got it. That's not my problem. I'd just - rather not." She paused, maybe grasping for words. "Don't exactly want to step in any of dad's… um… extremities, or remains, I guess."

Sam winced. "I'm really sorry -"

She cut him off again. "No, I know. I came to terms with the fact that I lost my dad months ago. Just… finish cleaning up or whatever, don't worry about me."

Sam could feel his face pinched up with worry, but decided not to push it and stepped away. She fell very still and quiet again as he returned to Dean.

"What do you think?" He asked quietly. Dean shrugged.

"Whatever she says, kid's grieving. Maybe hiding in a closet's better than alcohol, for all I know. She's probably not legal for anything else yet. Leave her be." Sam agreed and helped finish mopping up the blood.

Crowley stayed, beside the door, watching the girl curiously.

The brothers finished soon and stopped by the closet where the girl still was on their way out. They glowered at Crowley, who twiddled his fingers at them and Dean turned to Lea.

"Kid, you got… family who can take care of you? Place to stay, stuff like that?"

Lea snorted. "I'm almost nineteen," she told him.

"Not what I asked." He shot back.

"Fine. Yeah, a state over. And I know how to work a phone. They knew about dad's... thing, so I can tell them."

Sam and Dean shrugged before Dean turned to Crowley. "Well?"

Crowley lifted an eyebrow. "Well, what?"

"You're still here for some reason. Make yourself useful. I don't know… give her something. Protection."

"What do you expect? If you haven't noticed, it's usually the upstairs involved in the guard business."

"Then what are you doing here, Crowley?" Sam sighed.

"Well, now you mention it, I guess I can give her a little something… Because you asked so nicely, of course."

Dean looked up, blinking in surprise. Him and his own big mouth. "What?" He said. "What the hell?"

Crowley smirked. "Exactly." He popped away and back again, only this time with a snorting empty space he was petting beside him.

"What. The. Hell." Dean repeated, pulling out his knife again. Sam easily slung the shotgun around in his hands.

"Relax, boys." Crowley groaned. "Sure, my dogs like chewing things up, but their main purpose is to guard. That's what you asked for, right?"

"Why, Crowley?" Sam asked sharply.

"Easy, moose. My hound's never had a huan charge before. Color me curious. He won't harm her - he'll obey any of her commands in fact, so most likely no dead relatives, either. Impressed yet?" They looked at him blankly, until he rolled his eyes. "Watch. Hey, sweetheart, call for the pup, will you? My very own pet just for you, yeah?"

Lea had been studiously ignoring them up until that point. She sighed before whistling and clicking her tongue.

"Here, boy, come here! Here!" She sounded awfully sarcastic, before she let out a quick scream.

Sam and Dean both jumped and watched her closely, but her hands were stretched out in front of her, as if she was petting it.

"See?" Crowley said, turning their attention back to him.

"Crowley, if this stinking mess starts thinking about going wrong, I'll be pulling my own little play thing right out of your ass."

"Oh Dean, you certainly have a way with words. What a charmer."

"You don't just use humans as guinea pigs, Crowley. Especially kids." Sam said.

"I'm eighteen." Came Lea's voice, a little muffled.

Crowley motioned to her. "She's eighteen," He repeated. "And yes… I do. But this won't harm her, so at this point it's really her choice anyway, isn't it?" Playing the 'free will' card seemed pretty low. They stopped for a minute, watching Lea petting the air that took the slight shape of a hound, the way her hands were moving. "It's just a pup, anyway. She can train it up any way she likes."

"I'll be fine," Lea cut in. "Don't have to worry about me."

"Yeah, well… Whatever." Dean mumbled, shifting his feet uncomfortable. "Listen, kid, I don't like leaving you here alone -" Lea turned and again stared somehow directly at him, a blank look almost daring him to continue on her face. "I was going to suggest," He began forcefully, "That we give you our numbers or something, but.."

"I have a good memory." She answered. "If you just tell me your number or address or whatever you want to give me, I'll remember."

He made her repeat both the address and number multiple times before he was satisfied, but soon they felt comfortable enough to leave - or until they felt like they had to. Crowley had popped out a while ago, with another few promises that the hellhound wouldn't hurt her, and a few reminders that he was king of the crossroads, promise keeper extraordinare, but they had eventually let him leave the hound there as well.

As the boys drove back to the bunker, they didn't say much. They were both too preoccupied with blind girls feeding their werewolf fathers silver and keeping hellhounds as pets for that.


	2. Chapter 2

(A/N) Hi! Thanks to those of you who reviewed: It means so much! I'm glad you like it so far :) If anyone would be willing to give me some critiques on style, etc, then please don't hesitate, either! Otherwise, I'm hoping to update this story about once a week. I think that'll give me enough time to write and edit each new chapter. Hope you enjoy!

Two weeks later, the boys got a call.

"Yeah," Dean said, a little short.

"Hay… Um, it's Lea, from a week ago? Werewolf?" A voice began shyly.

"... Yeah." Dean said, when the other end of the line went quiet.

"Oh, um - I was wondering if your offer for a place to stay was still on the table?"

He quickly shut out an image of Kevin walking through the bunker's door. "... Kid, it wasn't… exactly an invitation, more like a 'come here if something's after you.' Speaking of which, hellhound situation?"

"Oh… Oh, yeah, he's fine, it's fine. I just…"

"Something wrong, kid?" Dean asked, this time a little more quietly.

"Not exactly, I mean. Yeah, not… not really."

"Listen, kid -"

"No, it's okay, thanks for talking. Bye."

Dean pulled the phone away and looked at the screen in surprise, Sam watching him expectantly.

"Everything ok?" Sam asked.

"Yeah… Yeah, it was that kid Lea from two weeks back, the werewolf thing. She was… well, I don't really know."

Sam looked curious, but shrugged. "Let's give her some time, call back tomorrow and check in or something, I don't know."

"Yeah, sounds like a plan."

The next morning, early - Sam had already showered from his run, but Dean hadn't gotten up yet - there was a tentative knock on the door. Sam grabbed his handgun from a lamp table, just to be safe, and ascended the staircase. When he opened the door, however, he almost dropped the gun in his haste to turn the safety on and shove it down the back on his jeans.

"Lea?" He asked, opening the door fully this time. The girl standing in front of him (above average in height, now that she was standing, he thought) looked tired. Her broad shoulders were slumped, her t-shirt was wrinkled and her jacket still had the hood tucked inside. Her hair was only a little wild, held out of her face with a bandana. She had one hand resting on a suitcase.

"Yeah… Sam?" She responded, her voice rasping a little.

"Yeah, yeah, that's me. What's wrong?"

"I… Need a place to crash." She admitted.

"What… happened to your family?"

"They agree." She answered haltingly.

Sam gnawed on his lip slightly before shaking himself awake. "Yeah, sure - come on in. You need me to get you something?"

"No thank you." She answered, following him inside.

Sam took her suitcase for her as she walked carefully forward. "Are there… devil's traps?" She asked, standing on the threshold.

"Oh, um, not here." Sam answered. "Do you have… it… with you?"

"My hellhound? Yes. His name is Oscar." She answered, smiling. When she walked forward, he suddenly, hesitantly, wondered if he should help. He reached out his hands, hunching his shoulders self consciously.

"Do you need… help? With the stairs?" He asked.

"That's ok," She answered, patting the empty space which held a quiet hellhound beside her. "Oscar's smarter than most help dogs. I'm safe."

Uneasy but accepting, Sam backed away.

"Could you lead the way, maybe? Oscar'll follow you."

"Yeah, sure," Sam said, quickly grabbing her bag and carrying it downstairs. "Do you need something? Coffee? Breakfast? I got yogurt from a place in town this morning, and Dean made me pick up eggs, bacon and hashbrowns last week. We've still got some left." He almost realized that he was rambling while he put her bag down and guided her to a seat.

"Coffee'd be great. Milk and sugar?" She answered.

"Yeah, sure. Be right back." He ran to the kitchen and poured her a cup, fixed it accordingly and brought it back. "Here you go." He told her, setting it a little more loudly on the table than he normally did, hoping she could tell how close it was to her by the noise. He then settled next to her.

"So what's wrong?" He asked, grabbing his own half empty cup of coffee.

"I haven't been totally honest with you… Or, I just sort of… withheld information. You all assumed and I let you, because I thought, 'what's the harm?' because that's what I've let everybody else think and it's worked so far, right?" She took a deep breath. "Listen," She began much more slowly. "I'm not… really blind."

He was probably looking at her strangely, as she took off her thick, blacked out glasses. Her eyes were still closed at first. She was wearing no makeup, but her lashes were thick, dark smudges. Then she looked up at Sam.

Her eyes were shocking. They were solidly iridescent blue. She had no pupils, no irises. The entirety of her eyes were a brilliant, shining blue, as if they had been replaced by smoothly polished crystal. They seemed to shine, as well, casting an unearthly tint to her face, but perhaps they were catching the light in the bunker.

"What happened?" Sam asked.

"A man came to my house one day. I was eleven. He said he was from the school system and needed to speak with me. Instead, he just swooped me up and pop, we were gone. He brought me to this room… It was warm, and rustic looking, with a big fireplace. In front of the fireplace was a bathtub. In the bathtub was a shimmery, thick looking watery substance. The man took off my clothes and put me in the water, all the way under. He bathed me in it.

"After he bathed me, he took me out and put me in my clothes again. Then, he took an eyedropper, and put something on my eyes. Then he took me home. But when I looked at him again, all I saw was a brilliant white light, kind of formed into four heads and six wings. It looked too huge to fit in my house, but it did, somehow. Then, he was gone.

"When my parents found me, they saw that my eyes had changed. My dad comes from a family of hunters, and started doing research. No one found anything. It didn't take away my sight, it gave me more. I could see things. Mostly, they were monsters. Some peoples' faces were decaying. Some people weren't people at all. And then, sometimes, I saw the bright people again. With the faces and the wings. I think they're angels. And I can see Oscar.

"I think that's why Crowley gave him to me. He knew. Somehow. Even though my parents did what they could to hide it, some people - especially from dad's past - found out. I guess I'm considered a grey area." She smiled ruefully.

"Your dad was still connected to the hunter's community?" Sam asked softly.

"Sort of, yeah." She answered. "It got really dark for a while. We got so desperate that dad figured he could use all the extra strength he could find. So, he hunted down the nearest werewolf." She fell quiet, rubbing her forehead tiredly. Her face pinched in places which belied her grief and pain. "We thought he could control it if I fed him silver, keep it weaker." She laughed darkly. "Obviously, that didn't work out.

"Mom isn't from that world. Your world. My world now, I guess. When dad turned, she moved back up with her parents. I can't put her in danger like that again. So… I came to you. You're the only person I know who can help me. Dad heard stories about you guys. Said a lot of hunters weren't happy because you seemed to blur lines..." She hesitated, voice weak. There was a part of her that was resigned, and another that desperately needed the hope she felt. "I know I'm a grey area. But can you help me?"

"Yes." Sam answered, without hesitation. "Yeah, we can help."

When Dean rolled out of bed an hour later, took a shower and went to the kitchen, he walked directly past Sam and Lea the first time through. He was in the middle of fixing his coffee before he realized that Sam was not alone with his books or internet, but that he was laughing. With a girl. Quickly, he took a gulp of half-doctored coffee - no sugar, and he grimaced - before quickly heading into the other room.

Sam and Lea sputtered to a stop when they noticed Dean standing in the doorway, and Lea quickly put her glasses back on, self conscious.

"Excuse me." Dean began, sarcastic. "Can I ask what reunion party I wasn't invited to this time?"

Sam looked up eagerly. "Dean, it's Lea. From a few weeks ago, remember?" Dean glanced over at her quickly.

"Yeah, phone call from yesterday. Why?" She thought he hadn't meant to be mean. Hopefully.

"She needs help, Dean. There was more to her story than a lone wolf." Sam thought about his words and quickly turned to offer an apology. She smiled complacently and accepted it.

"Right. What day is it?" Dean asked, rubbing his brow.

"Thursday," Lea answered quickly.

"Of course," he grumbled, and turned back around to get his coffee.


	3. Chapter 3

"You have any ideas what it might be that he put you in?" Dean asked, settling at the table across from her with another mug of coffee.

"We never got the chance to do any major research. Dad had all the contacts, but they were the ones trying to kill me. Otherwise, we were exhausted every resource we had - mainly internet and library. What else could we do?" The boys both nodded, before Dean took a breath.

"Listen. I get it: you're struggling to come to terms with your new superpowers, probably having a big existential crisis over how you're a grey area - why come to us? Out there, you're a poor blind kid. In here, you're a hell of a lot more than that."

"Because I'm being hunted again." Sam looked up, alarmed.

Dean rubbed his coffee cup between his hands and asked, "Why?"

She looked at him blankly. "Because word got out my dad was a werewolf. And now I have a pet hellhound. My grey area is looking just a teeny bit darker now." Dean conceded, though a stray thought about having two bitch faces to deal with crossed his mind.

"Right. How's… uh, that going, by the way?" He glanced around, unfortunately in vain, for a sign of the hellhound.

"Oscar's fine. He hasn't chewed anyone's face off or anything yet. Although he could use a bath… Anyway, I came to you for help. Advice. Can you help me figure out what's happened to me? Somehow get the hunters off my tail? I have a motel to go to, and Oscar's capable of protecting me, but…" She sat herself up a little straighter, spoke more forcefully. "I am not a killer, and neither is Oscar. I'd like to keep it that way."

"You can stay here." Dean answered. "And I think I know what happened to you." Sam mentioned.

Lee sat for a moment, stunned, before sagging. "Really?" She asked shakily, her voice very quiet.

"Yeah," They both answered. Lee laughed a little, and pet the head of the the invisible dog that bumped its snout against her hand.

Lee was putting her things in a spare room of the bunker, talking to her mom. Sam was gathering books, and Dean had a piece of freshly cooked bacon hanging out of his month at the table. "Sph whetd th cerpeeh berd gur pter eh?" Sam shot Dean a look over his stack of books. Dean finished the bacon before trying to speak again.

"What happened to her?"

Sam gave him another look that told him he knew that wasn't what Dean said the first time he answered anyway. "The first trial, Dean." He answered, pausing to put the books down. "The stuff we put on the glasses, that helped us see the hellhounds?" Dean looked mildly disturbed.

"Somebody stole our recipe and decided it needed more human?"

"No, Dean. What happened to Lee happened years ago. Eight years ago, in fact. If anything, we got the pirated version. And apparently, the real deal doesn't help you see hellhounds. The true faces of everything. Monsters, angels, demons, probably ghosts, everything."

"We don't only have a grey area then, Sammy."

"We have a sentient pair of fixed up glasses."

"You think she's thought about that?"

"That hunters might not just want to kill her, but use her as a metal detector for monsters? Come on, Dean. She's smart, but…. not like that."

"Yea, I figured." They paused, Sam opening up a few of the books he had used when researching the first trial, Dean finishing up a second cup of coffee until he suddenly looked up again.

"You know, Sammy, I think I just figured out how to get the hunters off her trail."

Sam looked up. "Yeah?" Dean grinned.

"Yeah." He got up and left the room. A minute later, Lee came back in holding a phone in her hand.

"Hay," She offered, and little uncertain.

"Hay," He responded. "So, I think I can tell you pretty much for certain what happened to you. Just not… By whom."

"Really?" She asked, quickly sliding down in the seat across from him.

"Yeah. See a while ago, Dean and I were… well, it was complicated. We were basically on a hunt that involved getting through hellhounds. So we got the formula for this substance that we dipped glasses into. As long as we had the glasses on, we could see the hellhounds. I think it was this - potion, I guess - that whoever kidnapped you put in your eyes." He slid over a paper with the mixture's ingredients.

"And the bath?" She asked, though she seemed preoccupied as she took the paper.

"Could have been the same stuff. More than likely, however, I would guess that it was a sort of cleansing ritual. Who knows, though." He answered. She nodded her understanding, then put the paper down.

"Thank you," She told him sincerely. "Thank you so much for all you and Dean are doing for me. You have no idea. My mom was so relieved when she heard someone was looking out for me." She grinned. Sam smiled back at her.

"Don't mention it. To be honest, I know how you feel. I know what it's like to be hunted for something that happened to you. If it wasn't for Dean, I wouldn't be here today. Glad I can return the favor." She grinned at him, deep blue eyes shimmering a little. It was probably the light.

"So! Is there anything else you guys are working on? Can I help?" She asked, her voice lighter than Sam had ever heard it.

"Right now, just yours." He answered.

"Oh…" She said, looking away.

"But I've been needing to go to the farmer's market for a while, want to come with me in the morning?" She laughed, but sounded excited.

"Totally."

"Cool." They drifted off for a few minutes.

"Hay Sam," Lee began thoughtfully.

"Yeah?" he answered.

"Can I give Oscar a bath?"

"Sure, but I wouldn't tell Dean."

She laughed while she skipped down the hallway, and Sam shook his head.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N [hi guys! so sorry for how long it took me to get this one up here - but i just got through with graduation, dance recital, all of my finals, and family in for the last few weeks. I'm wiped but i hope you enjoy!]

Dean looked disgustedly at the two sitting across from him as they diligently ate their salads and balefully stared at the greasy burger on his plate.

"So what was your plan to get the hunters off her tail, Dean?" Sam asked around a lettuce leaf.

"Made a call to an old 'buddy', asked him if he'd heard anything about a rogue hellhound with some kid. He said he had from a friend. I told him his friend could lay off because I was tailing the dog, three states over from here. Figure if they think a Winchester's on the job, not only'll the job get done, news'll spread pretty quick." Dean answered.

"If anybody asks, it'll be pretty easy to pass off as a possession. If news got around about your eyes," Sam turned to Lee, "Then that'll explain it. Upper class demons - who have hellhounds - seem to have different colored eyes: Lilith had white, Azazel had yellow, most of the crossroads demons have red. It might be sloppy but it'd be doable."

Lee accepted it, but shook her head. "Demon possession. If my name gets out, what'll my friends think?"

Dean shrugged. "Who knows? If it makes you feel any better, Sam's college buddies think Sam's a psycho serial killer who's died a couple times. Demon possessed with a pet hellhound isn't worse than that."

Lee giggled and shot Sam a look. They ate a little more before Lee said, "So Sam and I are going to the farmer's market in the morning, you want to come?"

Dean snarled around his burger. "At 7 in the morning to a hippy rabbit food festival? I'll pass."

Lee shrugged. "Whatever." She was settling back down with ehr side of applesauce when she thought of something else. "What about the man?"

They looked at her expectantly. "Man?" Sam repeated.

"The man. Who kidnapped me. Is there any way to find out who he is?"

"We don't really know anyone, I don't think…" Sam hesitated. "You think Cas would have known anything about it?"

"Another rogue angel? Maybe." Dean responded. "Hay Cas, need you down here, buddy. You got your listening ears on?"

Lee narrowed her eyes. "Who are you talking to?" She asked slowly. There was a quick fluttering sound, like wings, and Castiel was there behind her. When she saw the angel, she let out a sudden, shrill scream.

Cas looked alarmed, and Sam and Dean pushed themselves out of their seats. Lee had fallen forward, eyes squeezed shut and arms wrapped around her head.

"Dean, her eyes. She can _see_ Cas. She needs her glasses -" Sam yelled, pulling her close and pushing her face into his shirt. Her hands fisted into the material, still yelling in pain.

Dean took off to the spare room with a curse while Cas stood utterly still and asked, concerned, "What's happening?"

"I'll explain later, Cas." Sam answered, and Dean came sprinting back with the glasses and gave them to Sam. Sam gently pushed Lea away from him, slipping the glasses on her eyes. Her cheeks were smeared with heavy tears, face still scrunched with pain.

"What happened?" Cas repeated, watching Lee closely as she collapsed back into her chair, still gripping Sam's sleeve.

Dean sat down with a groan. "What happened was I'm an idiot. Cas, this is Lee. She was kidnapped by another angel off his rocker who put some hoodoo crap on her eyes so she can see everything's true form or whatever."

Cas looked alarmed. "If she looked upon my true form, she should no longer have eyes. You two know that." He looked at her closely.

Dean shrugged. "So the angel protected her somehow." He suggested. Sam jumped a little.

"The bath," He said suddenly. "The bath wasn't a cleansing ritual, it gave her some sort of protection. He was preparing to use her somehow."

Dean muttered a few profanities in the unknown angel's direction.

"Do you have the formula for what was put into her?"

"Her eyes, yeah. Roughly, anyway. It's right there." Sam told him, pointing to the small stack of books and files at the end of the table. Castiel walked over and picked up the paper on top. He read it quickly.

"This is the work of Herodiel," Cas said suddenly, disturbed. "How long ago did this occur?"

"Eight years ago," Dean supplied, and Castiel relaxed.

"Oh… Yes, Herodiel was executed seven years ago. He was Falling."

"Angels were executed instead of falling?" Sam asked, making Cas shrug.

"It depended on what they did, who they were fighting against. Herodiel was experimenting with humans, and was under Michael in the garrison. Michael was a strict leader."

Lee shuddered. "So I was… an experiment?" She asked, her voice strained and shaking.

Cas started towards her. "I am sorry. Herodiel was a monster, spiralling out of control. Some said he was doing those things because he wanted to Fall. He was mad - certifiable, as you might say. It says nothing about who you really are."

She sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Thank you, um… Cas?"

"That is the shortened version of my name, which is Castiel."

"Would… can I call you Cas? Or would you prefer Castiel?"

"Cas seems to be the most common choice. You may call me what you like."

"Thank you." She told him. He looked confused as to why she was thanking him, but nodded.

"Dean, I have a slightly more pressing problem." He said after a moment. Dean raised an eyebrow, daring Castiel to pull through with this more pressing problem. "There seems to be some sort of… hell creature around here. The wards on the bunker sometimes confuse me, but I am quite sure."

"Oh, that must be Oscar." Lee said quickly. Castiel looked at her again, confused.

"No," He began hesitantly. "There is no 'oscar'." He turned to Sam and Dean, hoping they could explain what an oscar was.

"Cas, Crowley gave her a hellhound. As a guard or whatever. It's just protecting her, it's fine." Dean told him.

"Crowley?" Castiel repeated.

"Yeah," Sam cut in. "Now it seems like all he wanted was to make sure no one got to her power. He must have known about what she could do, sensed it somehow." There was a pause.

"'Kay," Lee began. "Who's Crowley, exactly? He has hellhounds, obviously, so I guessed a demon?"

"He is the king of hell." Castiel answered promptly. Lee fell into a stunned silence.

"He's the what?" She asked blankly.

"King of hell." Castiel supplied for her again, kindly. He thought he must not have spoken loudly enough for her the first time.

"Yeah, Cas, thanks." Dean said, holding up a hand. "We've got that, it's cool. Give her a minute."

Sam was moving a little closer, and she let him carefully place a hand on her shoulder. "It's not… it's not the devil. It's not Satan." He tried to offer comfortingly. "Hell's more… complicated than that."

"The king of hell - Satan or not - wants whatever the angel did to me."

"Maybe." Sam allowed. "But he also could just want to keep an eye on you. Crowley likes knowing things. It could just mean that."

She took a deep breath, nodded and patted Sam's hands. "I need a drink." She announced, and walked to the kitchen. Sam started protesting that she was under age and didn't need to turn to alcohol anyway and she said, "Of coffee, Sam. Just coffee." And disappeared in the kitchen.

"This is a lot for her to swallow." Sam observed.

"This is a lot for me to swallow." Dean returned. "This is too much for her to swallow."

"She is handling it very well," Castiel offered.

"Yeah. She's got a steady head on her shoulders. There's a lot we still don't understand, but she's taking it." Dean agreed.

"What are we going to do about it, Dean?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. All we can for right now, I guess. Try to get it so she's safe enough to go back to her family?"

"Yeah. When we get there."

"Yeah."


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N) Hi again lovelies! Here's the next chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! It means so much. And please, if you have anything to say (critiques etc) please, please let me know! I'd really appreciate it.

Lea had lost count of how many times she had been left with no idea of where on earth to go, or how to proceed, or what to do with new information granted her since her eyes had turned. Sometimes it felt like she couldn't breath - other times like she had been doused with ice water, goosebumps breaking out all over her and standing with a purity of mind that wouldn't allow thoughts to form until the shock had passed. Why? Why not? Why her? Why now? What next? How should she respond? Was there a proper response? Why should she be obligated to choose the proper response anyway?

All she wanted was to feel safe. The boys had given that to her, to an extent. Sam cared. Dean did too, she thought, though she couldn't figure out why. She didn't really mean anything to them, she attempted to reason with herself. She also couldn't keep asking so much of them. She didn't know how to pay for what had been given her, and she certainly wasn't a freeloader, but where was she supposed to go?

Her head throbbed evenly in her temples, an ache brought on by the shock of Castiel's presence mostly, and the hot panic at the resemblance his image held to her captor's. It had been the same white, blinding but supposedly warm light embedded with power and (possibly imagined) righteousness. Her eyes prickled a little with the memory of the pain her last encounter with one of the shining beings had brought on.

Lea was a clear headed, simple, steady person. She was well read, had watched characters struggle through many of the same situations she now found herself in, and knew at least that she would not weep and moan over her life being taken from her, decisions being made without her knowledge, her future being written for her, as many characters had. She was still her own person, only with a few other obstacles in her path.

But she knew she was only nineteen. She missed her family. Her father had first been turned into a creature with impulses he could not learn to control and was later killed because of them. She had heard her father die. She was grieving. She was scared. She was uncertain of her future and she hated it. These emotions were not going to be reasoned away, and she didn't expect them to go away any time soon. She had also not been ready to live on her own. She currently had no means to provide for herself, a place to live, food for herself and Oscar now, or protection against those hunters Sam and Dean were attempting to deal with.

She decided that she couldn't think about all of that at the same time. Each time she did she could feel the panic inside of her, like she was caught in that perpetual state when she felt like she was falling while waking up from a dream. It was killing her. She should choose one problem at a time, and that problem was helping the boys figure out a way to get the hunters off her tail, with the help of a lot of coffee and hopefully pain medication.

Sam entered the kitchen. Lea was sitting on the counter, swallowing her medicine with a gulp of coffee.

"How you holding up?" He asked.

"Got a killer headache." She answered. "Otherwise, I'm good, thanks." He started over to the coffee pot. "Careful, Oscar's right in front of you." She said suddenly. Sam stopped short and she called Oscar away from Sam's path. He heard a huff of breath, then some scrapes and the clack of it's claws on the floor.

"So… I'm guessing your glasses black out your vision."

"Yeah. Dad tried looking for something that might reverse what happened but he could never figure out what the stuff was in the first place." Sam fixed himself coffee and turned back around, both quiet until Lee put her coffee down. "So you guys have a lot of books in this place."

"Yeah. All books on lore, really. Research materials, things like that. You like reading?"

Lea grinned. "Love it. Obsessed. You?" Sam smiled more easily than he had in years.

"So are we still on for farmer's market in the morning?" Lea asked. Her eyes were starting to droop.

"Absolutely," Sam answered eagerly.

Lea decided she could be happy for a few days, and ignore the inevitable expiration of her welcome. Feeling safe for a week was certainly not a bad thing.

"So. Cas." She began, making Sam chuckle.

"Yeah, Cas. He's, uh, he's something."

"He's an angel?" She asked, and he recognized the hint of awe in her voice. He looked at her, sympathetic.

"Yeah. I… Listen. I know there's a certain expectation for angels, but… don't put too much weight in it, okay? Cas is a good guy, but you can't say that about all angels."

She slowly took off her glasses. Her eyes weren't as shocking in the low light of the kitchen at night, but the light filtering through her lashes made them shimmer. "So demons just want to protect me, and I was kidnapped by and should be looking out for angels." She said.

"Don't think about it pessimistically, just think about everything that isn't human as being a lot more human than you would have expected prior. They're all as capable of falling to greed and anger as they are capable of falling in love and with compassion. It's a little disappointing," He admitted. "But it's better than nothing."

She looked at him quietly. Meeting her eyes, he noticed that with the light, the colors looked like they were swimming within the orbs.

"How did you find out? That angels weren't… good, I mean?" She asked.

Sam rubbed the back of his neck, tugging at the ends of his hair. "I was a gray area once. I was… hunted. Humans, demons, angels. I was considered an 'abomination', because of some shit I got into." There was a funny, bitter taste in his mouth. "That was our first run in with angels. Honestly, they're just so human - some don't know how to counteract the worse ones so they just follow, try to keep their heads down. They still have more power than anyone could imagine, but… in comparison, they are just as scared and vulnerable as we are." He looked at her, noticed that her face was carefully blank. "You okay? I know this is a lot to take in."

"Yeah, I'm fine." She told him quickly. "It's not like I thought I had an angel on my shoulder or anything, but… i don't know, it was nice to think there was something bigger out there, you know?"

"Yeah. It was almost terrifying to try and come to terms with, but it gets better."

She smiled at him. "Thanks, Sam. I think I'm about ready to crash, to be honest."

"Yeah, sure. You remember how to get to your room?" He asked.

"Yeah, thanks. See you in the morning?"

"See you."

"Come on, Oscar." She called, and started walking down the hall. There was a huff, a heave, and then the clack of nails down the hallway after her.

Closer to the middle of the night, Sam came up to Dean's room and knocked before letting the door swing open and leaning on the doorframe. Dean looked up and pulled the headphones off of his head.

"Lea asleep?" Dean asked him. Sam nodded.

"Yeah. I set her up in one of the bedrooms. We're going up to the market tomorrow, and she was tired."

"No wonder," Dean responded. "Have fun at your _farmer's market_." They paused for a moment.

"You know, Dean, I think we should pull out those glasses again. Make sure we don't step on Oscar or anything."

"I was thinking the same thing. I'll pull them out - we had them in the basement, right?"

"I think so. Should be in the most recent box."

"Cool. I'll put it on the agenda."

"Okay. G'night."

When Sam woke up to his alarm clock the next morning, he woke to the sound of a shower running. By the time he got out of the shower himself, he heard bumps and clanks coming from the kitchen and smelled the salty scent of sizzling bacon and eggs. He entered the kitchen, wet patches of his skin making his tshirt stick, still wringing his hair out with a towel.

"Morning," Lea said, sucking down a cup of coffee. Her unruly hair had been split into two plaits and braided tightly, a few fly aways framing her face because they were too short to fit in the braids. She was wearing a maroon sundress and a heavy sweater, and her glasses were on the table beside two plates. Her eyes seemed to have taken on a deeper hue.

"Is this for me?" Sam asked, motioning to the second plate.

"Mhm," Lea mumbled, her mouth full.

"Thank you," Sam offered, surprised, settling down to eat. She gave him another 'mhm' and shovelled more eggs in her mouth.

"I didn't know how you like you coffee, so there's a pot done." She said after swallowing another piece of bacon. "The plate beside it is Dean's. Think I should leave a note or something?"

"While I would usually say Dean's pretty good at eating everything in sight, a note's probably good." He agreed, and walked over to pour himself a cup. "You know you didn't have to do all this."

"Not a big deal, it's the least I could do, really. Anyway, farmer's market. How far away is it?"

"Not too far," He told her, accepting the change of subject. "I'd walk, really, but with the amount of food I usually get, it's easier to take the car."

She nodded. "Cool. Do you get major groceries there?" He nodded back at her. "Sounds good." They sat in silence, eating their breakfast for a while, both seemingly lost in thought. "How long before you think I'm in the clear?" She asked suddenly.

Sam looked up. "I don't know if there'll be a specific sign you're looking for. If things'll go smoothly, Dean's message'll take care of it."

"Okay." She answered, a little short. She hated to ask, but she was terrified of being thrown out. Being out in the world alone - even with the hellhound - was a horrifying prospect, and at the same time as she hoped they would just… forget she was staying temporarily, she needed an answer. She needed to know what was going on, what was going to happen, where she was going to be. Even with her heart beating heavily, however, she left the subject and tried to ignore it for the rest of the day.

Sam insisted on cleaning up after they were finished eating, and Lea grabbed her bag. When Sam led her to the Impala, she was swinging her glasses around in her hand. She caught a glimpse of the car, however, and stopped. "Whoa," She murmured, and rushed over to peak in the window. "No way," She almost looked afraid to touch it. Sam laughed.

"While Dean will appreciate your awe for his car, it usually works better if you're inside of it."

"No way." She repeated. "We get to ride in it?" He chuckled.

"Yeah. And I get to drive it. Shocker, right?"

"I… do you have like a tarp or some thick rug or something?"

"Um, Dean keeps a car cover around back. Why?"

"A hellhound. On that interior. Are you nuts? Oscar's gone everywhere with me but I'll leave him before I let his claws near that leather." She started circling the car till she found the tarp.

"Can't he just stay on the floor behind?" Sam asked, still amused. Dean had found more of a soulmate than he'd thought. She paused for a minute.

"He's too big for that, Sam." She said, and it made him pause. The creature which she had essentially raised and which had been staying with them alongside her had been present. They had heard it and she had reminded them of its presence, but that was all. He hadn't really thought about how big it really was. What it was capable of.

Lea was waiting for him to react, and the expression on her face made him push back his apprehension and grin at her.

"Did I mention Dean's about to realize that he loves you?"

"I wouldn't mind - you seen his eyes? Ugh. And I'd love to get a hold of that ass." She shot back, laughing as he gagged.

They got the dog maneuvered into the car and headed off to the farmer's market.


	6. Chapter 6

Lea waited until they got into town to put her glasses on.

"What do you mean, you've never read Stoker?" She asked. "You hunt vampires."

"Yeah, but they're not even close. Why would I need to read something if all it's going to do is feed me obviously false information?"

"Fine. Don't read it for lore. Read it because it's one of the biggest classics out there. Come on."

"Read it because everyone else is reading it? That's the logic we're going with here? So you're planning to pick up Twilight and Fifty Shades soon."

"Don't patronize me, Winchester." She tried glaring at him, her eyebrows furrowing. Her eyes flashed a little, the light filtering against them at a different slant. "Haven't you been curious as to why it's considered a classic? It's got more than a cult following, it brought on a new genre."

"Like Twilight, correct?"

"Sam," She whined.

"Alright, alright," He laughed. "Maybe I'll pick it up." She settled back down, looking piously accomplished.

When they pulled into the lot of the market, Lea asked Sam to roll the windows down a bit. "I was just thinking that I don't think Oscar'd do too well in crowded spaces. He's a little clumsy."

Sam laughed as he pumped the windows down and climbed out of the car. An image of a certain Scotsman in a suit dealing with a clumsy hellhound flashed through his head.

The farmer's market was crowded, mostly with people carrying shopping bags or pushing generic carts precariously along the sidewalks. There was a musician playing the accordion on a bench. Tents were set up with food, soaps, honey, sewing and knitting, and there was a scurrying of almost lazy activity the place was full of.

"So Sam, ever think about college? I guess it's not the easiest to juggle with hunting…"

Sam quieted for a moment, and Lea noticed.

"I'm sorry," She began. "That's personal and I shouldn't have - you don't have to answer. It's totally fine -"

"No, it's okay. I did once - I was going into law school of all things. You can assume - with the reading and all - that I'm more of a student anyway. Researching is much more preferable. Dean was never too interested. I mean, he's a genius, but in more tactile ways. Anyway, when I left, it temporarily severed ties with my family."

"That sucks."

"Yeah. I got in on a full ride to Stanford, for law. I worked two jobs, too. Had a girlfriend. It was… nice. It was solid. I shouldn't have done what I did to dad and Dean, but it was really good for me. I figure you probably regret half of every big decision in your life."

"Yeah, seems about right. You are such a lawyer though. What made you come back? Did you finish?"

"No, I never finished. Dad went missing, and Dean came and asked me to help look for him. I got back from a hunt with him a few days later and my - J-Jess died in a demon-fire. Turned out it was personal. Got me back into the life."

"Holy shit. I'm so sorry."

"Thanks. It was a while ago, but.. I was in a dark place for a while. I'm glad I came back though." They paused, Sam throwing a few tomatoes in his basket. "What about you? You have any plans for college?"

Lea laughed. "I think that my problems run a little too noticeable for me to pull off college. I've looked into a few schools who offer online courses. I could always do it that way. But otherwise, not anymore."

"Understood. You know though, just keep in mind that you should always try. It could help."

"Shut up and pick out your apples, wise guy."

Lea was carrying an extra basket by the time Sam was finishing up. They were heading back to the car when Sam stiffened a little, maneuvering himself behind her.

"Sam?" She asked, a bit startled. Up until that point he had been subtly, gently guiding her around in her visually impaired state. Her steps stuttered to a stop.

"Keep moving. To the car." His voice came, but it sounded distant, like he had his head turned another direction.

"Ok. Ok, I'm moving. Why? What's wrong?"

"Hunters. Lea, go on. Keep moving."

She felt her heart beat faster, but carefully picked her way forward. He promptly put a hand on her shoulder, easily guiding her along when he noticed the tension in her shuffling footsteps. Behind her, she heard a low, beer stained, smoke charred voice.

"Hay Winchester."

"Go." Sam told her. "You're at the parking lot. Go."

"And leave you alone?" She asked. She knew it was stupid.

"I'll be fine."

She slowly started walking away, cautiously peeking over the tops of her glasses. As she got closer to the Impala, she could hear Oscar growling uncomfortably inside, and the men behind her talking with Sam.

"Who's your friend, Winchester?"

"Nobody. Who're you?" Sam answered.

"Just over here on a hunt," One answered. There were at least two there by then, and Lea had almost made it to the car.

"I haven't heard of anything near by and anyway, this is our territory. What's this hunt about?"

"People've been saying demons are getting chummy with humans… again. I think you know what that's like, yeah, Winchester? We just don't want it to get too far."

Sam stiffened, but swallowed a snarl. "Thanks for the tip. We'll take it from here."

"We know. That's the problem." One said, and Sam looked at him keenly. Grimy hunters or no, these guys were smart. They knew about Lea. So why were they talking to him? Then, he thought he understood. He whirled around and spotted Lea opening the door to the Imapala.

"LEA, DUCK." He shouted. She obeyed immediately, as there was a pop and the window of the car shattered. In the same instant, there was a roar and the back door was flung open. Lea stood, for possibly a few seconds, stunned at the impact of the bullet and at Oscar's instantaneous reaction, but quickly reacted.

"Oscar," She hissed, hoping he was near because she couldn't take off her glasses then. "Oscar," She said louder. There was a startled screech from one of the hunters and Lea shouted at the hellhound a last time.

"NO, Oscar. COME." The hound hesitated before it started back towards her.

"What the hell was that?" One hunter demanded.

"Lea, get in the car." Sam called.

"Go on, boy. Up now." She shooed the hound back into the back seat and then swung herself in beside him, as the front seat was speckled with glass. She slouched down in the seat so that the sniper couldn't get a shot at her again. Outside, she heard the voices of the hunters faintly.

"If you think we're going to walk away from that monster and whatever the fuck that was, you ain't in your right mind, Winchester."

"If you need me to spell it out for you, here I go." Sam rumbled. "The girl is under our protection. You leave her out of all this, and you leave us alone. You go up against us, you die. This is our territory now; you respect our jurisdiction."

"Taking another freak under your wing? We know all about you."

"Then you know enough to figure out it's smarter to stay away. You don't want us on your trail. The girl is with us."

There was a silence, a long pause that made Lea want to hold her breath.

"For now, Winchester. You bought yourself and the freak a couple days, maybe. If you don't take care of it by then, you'll see us again real soon."

"If I see your face again it'll be the last time you breath. I make good on my promises."

She could tell from the sounds of fading footsteps that the men were leaving. She jumped violently when he slid into the driver's seat, and started up.

"Stay," He ordered instantly. "It isn't safe yet. Don't move till we're back at the bunker."

"Sam," She began, hardly realizing how badly her voice was shaking. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring this on you all. I'm sorry." There was suddenly a heavy weight settled comfortingly on her lap. She still didn't dare take her glasses off, but laid her hand on top of Oscar's head.

"It's ok, Lea. Those men don't know. I do. We'll protect you. It's our job because we know it's right. I want to help you, Lea. Don't put this on you."

The car started and they pulled away, Sam having put the bags of groceries he managed to save onto the glass littered seat. They drove in silence for a while, and Lea started shivering. Oscar moved in closer to her.

"You know, it might not have been the smartest move, but why didn't you let Oscar finish them off?"

"I'm not a killer, Sam. And I don't want to teach Oscar to be one, either. He knows his heritage I think, but I've been teaching him that he doesn't have to be like that." She was shaking violently, and it showed.

"I understand." He answered, glancing back at her in the rearview. She could tell he was worried, but he didn't say anything. They drove back to the bunker in silence.


	7. Chapter 7

[A/N Hi again guys! *sheepish* I'm so sorry it's taken me so long… But I hope this is ok :) Please, please tell me what you think! Could I have some opinions on where ya'll think this could go? (I have general ideas but at this point they are completely malleable) Or have you gotten a feel for the story yet? Is it gaining legitimate traction? Let me know!]

Chapter 7

Sam could feel that Lea was shaken up. He knew. Being called a freak had become normal during his stint as a demon blood junkie: it was a second hand insult at this point. It had lost its shock factor for him when he had started believing it. He was sure Lea was suffering, a myriad of complications, occurrences, and situations multiplying on her mind in a frighteningly consistent pattern. It was difficult to imagine her reacting as drastically as he had. It was just as difficult to consider her a flight risk while he wanted to badly to help her.

Sam had discovered long ago that it was more beneficial to do the more difficult thing if it was what was going to make the situation turn out ok, than to do the empathetic thing, which he so badly wanted to do. He wanted to befriend her. That was something he craved selfishly, desperately, and he had denied himself for a long time. As much as he wished for friendship, however, he tried to prepare to take a more practical approach. It was always a possibility, and he needed to be equipped.

This sucked.

He found himself wondering what precisely she could do. As far as emotional breakdowns went, he felt comfortable ruling it out as a possibility. He felt that she was solid, healthy enough emotionally to work through grief, and perhaps (likely enough) depression. Striking out on her own because of guilt was plausible, but more dangerous than he could imagine. While he could use his own powers, she would be seen more as a tool, and that was terrifying.

Sam's thoughts continued drifting back to Dean's voice, distorted over voicemail. It had pushed him over the edge, when shit had started going down, truly, before the apocolypse. Something like that wouldn't _turn_ Lea. It would break her.

He hated himself for assuming that he knew so much about her. They weren't that close... Yet?

He glanced over at Lea, who had her eyes closed, taking deep, full breaths.

Back at the bunker, Sam asked Lea to carry the groceries in while he went to find Dean. She didn't take her glasses off, and Oscar pressed lightly to her side to lead her forward.

Sam noticed, but didn't say anything. Instead he waved at Dean to step out of the kitchen and finish up a conversation he was in the midst of on the phone.

"What's up?" Dean said.

"Run in at the market. Couple of hunters. Passenger window's shot."

"Dammit.." Dean grumbled. "Otherwise ok?"

"Yeah. This is getting harder on her."

"You don't have to tell me that, man. So, plans? Got anything figured out yet?"

"I don't know. Do you think Cas can fix her?"

"I asked. He said he can't reverse what happened without a full out ritual, and all of what's-dick's-face's work was destroyed entirely. What we have is such a rough recipe that anything he tried to come up with from that might somehow make it worse."

"We'll think of something then."

Lea walked in at that moment, holding a mug in one hand and the other looking as if it was grasped at Oscar. "Hay, guys. I- um. I made some more coffee. Hope that's ok."

"Thanks for breakfast," Dean answered.

"Oh, no problem!"

"That reminds me. I found our glasses, so no more tripping over shaggy here." Dean went back over to the table and picked them up, handing a pair to Sam.

"Thank you guys." Her voice was a lot more quiet. The boys put their glasses on.

The hound beside Lea stood about at her ribcage. The air folded around it, writhing, and gave it a smoky grey appearance. Its fur looked knotted with its musculature, like tree roots boiled and stirred liked spaghetti. Its eyes glowed a dim blue and matched Lea's, instead of the vicious red they were accustomed to.

"Well then, Scooby." Dean commented. Sam knelt down and beckoned it over. Lea gave Oscar a nudge and turned to where she thought Dean was.

"Listen, Dean, I'm so sorry, but the window - "

"Not your fault. I've had to fix baby up enough, it's not that complicated anymore. Don't worry about it." He met her eyes firmly, with strange flashbacks to a younger brother those days before his guilt turned self destructive. "Maybe you could help me fix it?" Her mouth dropped open a little and he figured that was the right call.

"I.. what - I mean. On _that_? Work on a 1967 Chevy Impala? Well. Yes."

"Hell yeah," Dean answered, laughing. There was a thumping noise from where Sam and Oscar were, where Sam had caught a spot behind his chin, and his leg was bouncing on the floor. Lea cracked a smile.

"Guys.. I don't know how I'm going to pay ya'll back for this." She began.

"No, Lea -" Sam began.

"Sam, I'm serious. You're the only people who could do anything for me, and you've done it. You're doing it. Can I pay you back somehow?"

"You can keep making breakfast like that." Dean suggested instantly. Sam smacked him.

"Listen. You don't really owe us anything, but if you want, you can stay around. Help out if you want it to count as rent or something. We do research and check up on things going around. I'm trying to make up a new archive of the books here. If you're interested."

"Yeah, I can do that. I just.. I need to get on my feet, you know? Thank you guys." She couldn't go back to her family, of course. To put them in this danger was unthinkable. At the moment, however, the need to keep them safe trumped the homesick feeling permeating the edges of her consciousness.

Later in the evening, after assessing the damages to the Impala, Dean was walking back through the bunker to the kitchen. Sam and Lea were sitting at one of the large tables, in silence, both bent over thick books. He was pretty sure one of them had sneezed earlier, due to the dust. They would deny it, probably. He grinned.

It had been a while since Sam had had someone. A long time, actually. There really hadn't been anyone consistently, since Jess. No one who could just sit in silence, companionable silence, with him. Dean knew that. He didn't recognize it often, but thinking of Benny, Cas, and even Charlie made him sit back and realize that Sam didn't have companionship anymore. Lea was going to be as good for them as they were trying to be for her, because as much as he loved his brother, life sucked without anyone else around.

He could see the independence in her, the struggle of having "Freeloader" metaphorically spray painted on her forehead. She was proud - the good kind - and hardworking, determined, practical. He could see that. She didn't want to acknowledge that she was still a kid, though. In a lot of ways she wasn't anymore. Dean got that. If there was one thing he knew, however, it was that knowing you can't be a kid anymore doesn't mean you stop being one. That was something John never got. It was something Dean would deliberately get when he was with Lea.

He leaned against the counter, untouched coffee cradled in his hands. A while ago he had stopped spiking it, but his hands shook sometimes. With Lea here, being underage, maybe it'd give him incentive to throw the rest out. He really didn't need it anymore.

Dean took the glasses out of his back pocket and slipped them on before heading back into the main room with the other two. "Alright guys, ideas?"

They both jumped, startled, and Oscar rolled his eyes up lazily to watch him. He wondered if the hound's eyes meant anything.

"Ideas about what?" Lea asked.

"What to do. Those friendly neighborhood hunters you ran into earlier aren't going to disappear, and aren't going to be the only ones. I figure you've got as much right to decide what we need to do about it as the rest of us." Dean responded.

"Oh," She answered, looking a little uncomfortable. Sam sat back, and they watched her expression harden to a decisive set. "I don't know, but I already told Sam. I'm not a killer, and neither is Oscar. I'm staying away from all that. If that makes this situation more difficult, I'm sorry. If I'm overreacting, I'm sorry. But I'm not fueling their fire and I'm not changing like that."

They both nodded. "We respect that," Sam said. "This life isn't for everyone."

"But you've gotta get this." Dean continued. "You and the hound might not be killers, but we are. It sucks sometimes but to survive in this life there are things you've gotta be willing to do. It gets dirty. We handle it."

They couldn't decipher how she felt about it. Sam almost asked if she would take her glasses off, but decided against it. "You guys are the experts. I trust you." She finally said. It was a simple enough answer. Sam and Dean both fully understood its implications.

Things could get violent, but they started hoping it wouldn't. Lea had seen enough of that.

"Well," Dean said, clapping his hands. "Why don't I scrounge up some dinner?"


	8. Chapter 8

[A/N: Hay look guys I'm procrastinating working on NaNoWriMo to give y'all another crappy chapter… maybe the end?]

Chapter 8 -

Lea was more mellow than she had ever been around the brothers. Even Dean noticed, and he responded by cooking dinner that night (his hamburgers) and clapping Vonnegut down in front of her.

"Um… Dean?" She looked up, confused.

"If you open it up, it has a lot of words you're supposed to read. I figured you and Sam got along so well because you bonded over books - like word osmosis in your personalities or something."

She took the book and smiled up at him. He saw his own reflection in her glasses. "Thanks," She told him.

"Yeah," He patted her shoulder and moved on, back to the kitchen.

Lea realized he was going to clean up and leapt after hi. "No wait," She said. "I'll clean up: you fixed dinner."

"You fixed and cleaned up after meals for the last two weeks. I got this. Go read.

"No, I can -"

"No. I'm doing it."

"I'm not a freeloader, Dean." Her voice was angry, trembling. It made him pause and turn back to look at her. Her jeans were too big on her, and it looked like the sweater she was wearing was her dad's. The kid was still hurting, over top everything else, and he understood where she was coming from. If she needed help finding and keeping a roof over her head, how could she keep up anywhere else?

He fixed her with that stern dad stare Sam had gotten often enough. "I'm not calling you a leach. I'm saying I got this. I get that you're in a slippery position right now and you'll get your shit together. We're balancing it good enough right now: just go with it." They stood facing each other for a while, and he was actually impressed that she didn't yield right away.

"How about this," He began. "Start up a business for us. Get Men of Letters going again. We used to have a guy we'd call for info about hunts, so be that guy. You can live here _if_ you start up a new research center. Start a website to protect identity and location. Maybe we can trade days to make food and clean if you want to. If you want to stay here, compromise." Giving Sam ultimatums had always been disastrous, but Lea was drowning right in front of him. He watched her work the deal over in her mind before she stuck her hand out at him.

"Deal."

He fought back a grin while he shook her hand, and watched her grab his book and call Oscar to follow her down the hallway.

"Sam! Dean! Get your glasses and come watch!"

The boys were at the table, finishing off a pot of coffee. Sam's hair was still wet from an after run shower. They had their glasses on a little side table and jumped up to grab them, slightly panicked as they ran to Lea's room.

They found her on the floor, sitting crosslegged in front of Oscar. The hellhound was sitting at attention. It had gotten even bigger, and its eyes glowed brighter.

Lea's room had turned into a library on its own. She had moved five new bookshelves into it, and was slowly collecting books she thought she used most often. Beside her bed was a desk with a cheap, bulky laptop on it, and the desk was surrounded by papers and sticky notes with descriptions and people she needed to contact. Otherwise, she'd bought Oscar a huge dog bed (more like a small, legless couch), a stereo, and a little shelf beside her bed with works of fiction for pleasure reading and a few sketch pads. Everywhere, on every flat surface, there were little knickknacks. She had a few sketches and quotes posted above her bed, and on the ceiling. Sam recognized it all: she was nesting. In a very haphazard, cluttered fashion, she was settling in.

"Watch this," Lea said excitedly. "Oscar," Her tone dropped a little. "Down." The big dog plopped on the floor with a thump, hunkering down. "Roll over." Awkward, Oscar maneuvered his huge, cumbersome limbs up underneath him, and thumped his shoulder on the floor. Sam and Dean winced involuntarily. Lea had a wide smile on her face. Oscar slowly, clumsily worked himself onto his back before flopping over the rest of the way and frantically pawing and scraping at the ground in response to Lea's command of 'Up! up!' and shook himself before giving a little pounce in her direction.

"Good boy!" She said enthusiastically, rubbing his ears. Dean rolled his eyes when Oscar, at this point recognized as a fairly dopey dog, bounded over to Sam for a reward pat next.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: hi again, everyone! I should stop apologizing for being so late, because of broken records or some such… Anyway, I've got more direction for where I want to take the next part of the story! Next chapter I'm bringing Crowley back :D Also, if anyone needs a little reassurance, I'm not taking the story anywhere that'll explicitly have any spoilers, but there are going to be tiny hints at Season 10's plot in the next few chapters. Miniscule. Lilliputian. But they'll be there. And as always, thank all of you so much for reading, and those of you who have reviewed, I love you 3 Enjoy!

Chapter 9

Another week had gone by and Lea was easily continuing to settle in. She'd started taking over some of the research they did - checking news for odd stories that showed signs of possible hunts - so that they could focus on something else. They wouldn't tell her what it was, so she could only assume it was dangerous. She thought it might have something to do with her that they weren't sure about yet, but forced herself to focus on her own job. It didn't feel right, that they couldn't trust her with hunches especially about herself, so it did occupy her mind a heavy amount of the time she spent working on other things.

She had taken over one of the long tables in the main room with newspapers, and printed out articles from the web. There was one article that peaked her interest more than others going around mostly because it was so close to the bunker.

Dean was in the kitchen making stir fry (she'd requested it after she made him peach pie the night before) when she went looking for him. Lea swung her head around the corner.

"Yeah?" He said when he noticed her.

"I think I found something," She said, and pushed the papers in front of him.

"Awesome," He answered, taking the pages. "What ya got?"

"Couple and daughter spend their first night in the house they just bought. Wife wakes husband up because their daughter's still awake, and she notices it's gotten really cold. He agrees and goes to check the thermostat while she goes to talk to her daughter. On his way downstairs, it looks like he's pushed and knocks his head in at the bottom. The woman's being held suspect even though they both testify that she wasn't near him when he fell." She answered, scooting herself up to sit on the counter. "I just thought it sounded like cold spots, so maybe a haunting? It's only two towns over, so if it's a fluke, you know… you won't be wasting gas money or anything."

"Yeah, no, this is good. It's a lead anyway. Get off my counter." He shooed her down and gave her back the papers before continuing. "Next step's going to be researching the house. How old is it, what about suspicious circumstances, any strange deaths over the years, that kind of thing. Figure out, if it is a haunting, who's haunting it?"

"Got it." She answered, sliding off reluctantly. "You know, I have another question."

"Shoot,"

"Where… exactly do you get your gas money?"

Dean met her with a blank look, because (if that shit eating grin of hers was anything to go on) she knew exactly where they got their gas money.

"Go do your homework," He ordered, waving her out of the kitchen.

She laughed, but scurried out anyway.

By the time Dean had dinner ready, Lea had the case figured out. When Sam got to the table, she recapped them both and went on with her latest theory.

"Alright, the house was built fairly recently so there was only one possibility. About ten years ago, the only death occurred on the premises. It was a family, parents and two kids. The father was an abusive drunk, and eventually the wife got so fed up with it that she pushed her husband down the stairs when he was going after one of the kids. She died of a heart attack (speculated that it was shock induced) shortly thereafter, so there were no convictions. I figure it's the wife who's doing the haunting, still trying to protect her kids, since the husband was too inebriated to think straight when he died. Eh?"

The boys nodded, looking impressed.

"Straight up," Dean said.

"Yeah, seems like you've got the case in the bag." Sam offered. "We can head out tomorrow and take care of it."

"Any living relatives around?" Dean asked.

"Yeah," Lea answered. "Older kid's still in town, even. Stayed as a professor at the local college."

"Perfect. If a salt and burn doesn't fix it, then it's probably a cursed object. Hopefully the kid'll be able to help with that."

"Ok, great! So when do we leave?"

"Oh no." Dean said quickly, casting a consternated glance her way. "There ain't going to be a 'we' about this."

"What?" Lea began loudly. "Are you kidding? Come on!" She turned to Sam.

"Lea, I don't think it's the best idea for you to -"

"Seriously, guys? You don't think I can handle this or something?" She asked.

"It isn't that," Sam assured her. "It's just… There's a lot that goes into a hunt, and we don't want you to get hurt."

"Guys! I mean - what if someone comes and finds me at the bunker? What if something happens to you guys and I don't know it? What if something important happens and I can't get a hold of you?"

Sam sighed, conflicted, and Dean started laughing.

"You get to work this one out, dude," He told Sam, getting up with his plate and slapping him on the shoulder.

"What?" Sam protested. "Why?"

"This is literally the same conversation we had with you every time we went out on a hunt before you started in with us," Dean told him. "The exact same. Have fun."

Dean left, and Sam looked after him a little lost before turning back. Lea looked at him squarely, trying out a pathetic face. Lea thought Sam suddenly looked a little scared. Good, she thought.

"Lea, I seriously don't think it's a good idea.."

"I know, Sam, and I get that! But being alone is really scary, too, and might not be the best idea either. Plus if I go with you, I can help with whatever you guys need me to! And I can do extra research if it comes up: anything!"

"The problem isn't that you'd get in the way, Lea -"

"But that's kind of exactly what you're saying." She cut him off.

"No, no, what I'm saying is -"

"That you guys aren't going to need me and that I'd just get in the way and be a distraction, that's exactly what you're saying. But I promise, I won't! This is an easy case, you guys have already said I basically figured it out, I can do this!"

Sam shook his head at her quickly. "You still aren't letting me explain what I'm actually saying," He told her.

"Because I already know what you're going to say, except that you're just going to sugar coat it and make it sound better. That's not looking at the facts, Sam." She answered just as quickly.

"Fine!" Sam finally admitted, throwing his arms up in the air. "Pack your stuff, we'll leave in the morning. Just a duffle bag. And - I don't know - put a tarp in the back seat for the hound again. _Jeez_." He pushed his chair back and took his own dishes into the kitchen, huffing indignantly.

Lea tried stifling a triumphant laugh but didn't quite succeed. Sam shouted, "Shut up!" At her from the kitchen and she took the opportunity to run back to her bedroom before they changed their minds.

"You caved, didn't you?" Dean asked when Sam walked in.

"She wouldn't even let me complete a sentence: how was I supposed to not cave?"

"Mhm," Dean drawled, turning back to finish washing his dishes.

"Shut up," Sam shot at him as well, and walked out to find his laptop. His laptop listened to him, at least.

Lea was up before Sam, even, the next day. She had the back seat of the Impala ready to carry Oscar, and her duffel bag packed and stuffed along the back seat so it wouldn't take up any of the boys' room in the trunk. She had organized the information she had found into a folder to take with her, and had just started fixing breakfast when Sam walked in.

He looked at her and grinned, a little surprised. "So, excited, I guess?" He asked smugly.

"You look dumb when you smile like that," She shot back.

"Alright, alright, I get it. Don't get to make fun of the newbie - even though you do seem pretty perky this morning."

She turned on him quickly, her face scrunched up, and shook a spatula at him. "Out!" She told him. "You go outside and run and sweat a lot or something."

"Yes, ma'am! Have you made a checklist for everything we're going to be doing today yet? It helps the nerves, so I've heard." He laughed out loud and started sprinting when she came after him.

"Take Oscar with you," She ordered, pointing to the door into the kitchen.

"You want me to walk an invisible dog?" Sam asked from the stairs, confused.

"I want you to go on your run and remember that he's with you when you use doors." She answered. "Oscar," She clicked her tongue and was answered by those clicks on the floor again. "Stay with Sam," She ordered carefully. There was a sound like a quick bass note out of a subwhoofer, which was Oscar's equivalent of a yip, and then clicking up to where Sam was.

One of Sam's legs gave out on him when he felt a large, wet nose sharply poke the back of his knee, and he started off.

Lea turned around and went back to the kitchen when she knew he was finally outside for his run. When she made it back, she pulled out the carefully folded piece of paper from her pocket and stuffed it into the trash. Ok, she made a checklist. So what?


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Back again for another chap! I finally had revelation the other day, and I think I found a definite direction for the story to go. I got really excited, hence the little extra length on this update. Hope you like it, and thanks again to everyone who's been leaving reviews/favs/likes! Love you all!

Chapter 10

Sam and Dean had looked at each other uncertainly as they pulled up to a dinky, suspicious looking motel. Sure, it was even one of the nicer ones they had stayed in in a long time, but something about dragging Lea with them made them second guess its decency.

Sam and Dean _had_ discovered that Lea slept on car rides. They hadn't even been on the road for 15 minutes before she had uncomfortably balanced her head on her seat belt and - of course - started snoring. She finally woke up as they were circling the third motel they had looked at. This one had no stains or mold on the outside that they had seen so far, and the cars parked around it didn't look entirely disgusting. It still wasn't a chain, which made their chances of quality drop - but the prices dropped as well.

"Oh, are we here already?" She asked sluggishly, fixing her glasses and wiping drool off her chin as sneakily as she could.

"Well -" Dean began, wondering if he could make up a quick excuse as to why they weren't staying there and go find a better one. Finally, he decided against it and swung into a parking place. This was as good as any they were going to find within their means. "Yeah."

"Why don't you walk Oscar or something while we get us a room?" Sam suggested, and Lea shrugged and complied.

She scooted out the passenger side back door and opened it wide enough for Oscar to jump out. He immediately ran out into a tiny grassy median where he almost stood on either side of the concrete barriers. She leaned against the front of the impala as the boys went inside.

Settling, Lea fiddled with her glasses to keep them sufficiently covering her eyes. She remembered how it had been when she'd first started wearing them, stumbling around. Using her other senses to aid her instead of her eyes had been worse than the time when she had broken her right hand and had to learn to be dependent on her left. Vision was something altogether more precious.

"Excuse me," A voice startled her out of her thoughts.

"Yes?" Lea acknowledged. The voice was one of an older woman, coming from about two feet away.

"Sorry, I just pulled up and noticed… Anyway, I was wondering if you needed any help? Or if you're lost?"

"Oh, no. Thank you, ma'am, but I'm just waiting for… my brothers. They're inside trying to get us a room. I… don't really like a whole lot of new places." She sounded pathetic, and honestly it disgusted her the way she was trying to fool this nice lady. All the woman wanted was to help an apparently blind girl standing in a parking lot - but what was she supposed to do?

The woman smacked her lips and sighed sympathetically. "Of course, dear. Would you like me to stay with you till they get here?"

"Oh, that's alright, ma'am. I couldn't ask you to -"

"Please, sweetie, I really insist." The woman said firmly, moving closer. She moved slowly, and obviously bumped a bag of some kind against the side of the car so that Lea would know where she was. She jumped a little at the noise, ashamed that she exaggerated the response and caused the lady to say, "Oh dear, I've gotten so clumsy over the years. That was just - it was just my bag, dear, nothing to worry about."

"Oh, don't worry ma'am, it was really nothing. I'm just a little tired is all. I can… I get a little jumpy when I'm tired."

"Poor thing," The woman responded. "Have you and your brothers been traveling for a long time?"

"I…" Lea began floundering. How many lies could she tell at a time? This woman was just trying to help her. "A little while I guess, yeah." She hoped the answer was vague enough and offered a smile in the woman's general direction.

"Oh! Are these them now?" The woman asked. Just then, Lea picked up on faint crunching footsteps.

"Hey, Lea." Sam said, sounding just slightly hesitant.

"Oh yeah, these are _my brothers_, Sam and Dean." Lea answered, stressing her words so that they'd be sure to pick up on it. Not that they weren't smart enough to pick up on it before, of course, but the last thing Lea wanted by then was for the woman to find out that she'd been lying.

"Yeah, we just ran in to get a room." Dean told her.

"Both of you?" The woman asked, in one of those overly chipper tones which implied that she knew something else had been going on.

"Yes, ma'am." Sam answered. "We were just trying to scrounge up what money we had. We've… Fallen on rough times, since we took full custody of Lea here. Otherwise we definitely would have gone to a nicer place, too," He laughed in a self derogatory, embarrassed sort of way. There was a pause, and Lea suddenly had an irrational fear that she didn't look anything like the character Sam was portraying her as. What was she supposed to do with her face while someone else was telling the lies?

"I see," The woman said, sounding less hostile. How did Sam do that? How long had they had to lie about everything about themselves?

"Well, ma'am, thank you so much for staying with our sister for us - I think it's about time to get our stuff to our room." Sam told the lady.

"Of course," She offered kindly. "You all look out for each other, you hear? Times are getting tough on everyone where money's concerned. Heaven knows I hardly scrounge enough to keep myself going."

"Thanks, ma'am. Take care." Dean appeased her, and they all got into the car. Lea waited for the click of the woman's shoes to fade a little before snapping her fingers and calling Oscar back.

Dean started the car back up and drove around to the other side of the building, right in front of the door, and continued like nothing had happened. Lea's chest hurt right at her heart and she tried to ignore it, be like the boys and forget about the encounter entirely.

Once at the motel room, they all grabbed their duffle bags and threw them over their shoulders as Dean unlocked the door and they pushed their way inside. The place was obviously old: the ceiling was textured, and the floor was still covered in purple shag carpet. Otherwise, it seemed good enough. The boys shook the sheets on the two beds out, throwing up crumbs and displaying lipstick stains but otherwise they seemed to be clean. The bathroom was fine except for a little grime in the corners where the tub met the floor and there were a few burn marks on the shower curtains. It smelled like cigarettes covered in cheap scented spray and had no windows except for one, which looked out at the line of doors next to them. Lea didn't mind, really. She finally took off her glasses (though she was honestly hesitant to after the earlier encounter) and asked the boys about sleeping arrangements.

"Well, I was hoping for a couch," Dean admitted, "But Sam and I'll take this one. You can have the other."

She accepted it. Dean didn't seem the type to like people questioning his orders. People had always told Lea - before her… eyes - that she would be the easiest person to live with. She thought people probably said this because she had a talent for knowing what would aggravate different people, and not doing those things. Honestly, all she really wanted was to live peacefully.

The boys began pulling out suits. Sam set up an iron.

"Where are you guys going now?" Lea asked.

"To talk to the family, the police, and anyone else we find who has a connection with the death." Sam explained.

"Oh," Lea answered. "Well… Can I tag along?"

Sam and Dean exchanged looks. "I don't think so," Sam answered. "Listen, Lea, we don't want to drag you into this any more than we have to, and what we're going to do isn't exactly legal."

Lea looked at the suits and then at the boys. "You're impersonating feds." She said flatly.

"Um…. yeah." Dean answered.

"So it isn't just not exactly legal, it's really really illegal."

"Um…. yeah." Sam answered.

"Well…" She felt that stress from earlier in the day build. Her lying to the woman was entirely unrelated to the boys not letting her go with them, but they evoked much the same reaction and it had doubled by this time. That burning shame and guilt in her gut turned into anger, which she quickly shoved down. If nothing else, she was determined to remain in control of her emotions. "Ok, I guess. Anything else I can be doing in the meantime? Maybe where the research is involved?"

"He's the one you ask there." Dean told her, shoving a thumb in Sam's direction.

"Go back through the information you compiled. Look for discrepancies. This seems like a cut and dry kind of deal, but it never hurts to be certain. Also, knowing as much as possible about the living family itself is helpful. I'll get my laptop out for you, so if you can do some background checks that'd be great." Sam stepped in. Lea nodded. She wasn't sure how to do background checks, but she was sure she could figure it out.

Unfortunately, the background checks were stiflingly boring. There was a possibility, she recognized, that she was going about them incorrectly. However, the information she was able to dig up was entirely unhelpful and uneventful. She texted Sam and told him there was nothing worth anything where backgrounds were concerned, and he thanked her quickly and told her they'd be back soon. Instead, Lea spent the hours the boys were gone doodling on the backs of her notes on the case and watching the weather, as that was one of the only channels besides pornos available on the box television. She also took a nap.

The boys came back and knocked on the door about four hours later with drive-thru burgers and fries in hand.

"Anything?" She asked eagerly when she let them in. They shrugged.

"Not much," Sam answered. "Found out the guy was buried, not cremated, so it makes getting rid of the haunting a lot simpler."

"Routine," Dean agreed.

Lea plopped down on the bed with a french fry hanging out of her mouth. "Well this is disappointing." She informed them, and all they could do was shrug and nod their heads. "What now?"

"Now, we wait till we can find the grave tonight, go dig up the bones and salt 'n' burn them." Dean explained.

Sam grabbed his laptop and clicked on it for a few minutes before saying, "Got the address for the graveyard. We're set."

"Guys. This is so boring. What'd you drag me out here for?" Lea groaned mockingly. The boys both turned on her sharply and gave her evil eyes for it, too. She laughed and grabbed one of the burgers.

The boys changed out of their suits and into the clothes they had been wearing earlier that day,made sure phones were charged and waited until around 11pm before they started getting restless and ready to head out. Lea thought that maybe she'd at least get to see the ghost while they were digging up the grave, possibly. She didn't think it was overly morbid, but it would make the trip worthwhile.

She was on her way out the door when Dean stopped her immediately with a "Whoa, whoa, whoa," and his arm blocking the doorway. "Not a chance, spitfire." He said. Lea felt her jaw drop before she realized what her mouth was doing.

"You're kidding, right?" She asked.

"No." Dean told her. "This case is easy, which means there's always room for complication. Stuff like this goes south real quick."

"No way." She responded. "You're trying to keep me holed up in this hotel room this whole time? Seriously?"

"Yeah," Dean answered. Maybe that wasn't true, but exaggeration was always the name of the game when Sam had gone through this.

Lea felt that rage she had felt earlier start up again, and this time couldn't really get a handle on it. She turned on Sam and didn't say a word, just fixed him with an affronted glare. He sighed and plaintively started explaining.

"Lea, it's just that first timers on ghost hunts aren't the safest thing in the world, and that's all we really want for you."

She didn't verbally respond, just worsened her glare at him. Finally, she realized that they weren't going to give in. She let out a little almost-growl (maybe she'd been around Oscar a little too much as of late) and turned around. "Fine!" She told them, and in doing so also told them in no uncertain terms about her state of mind. She threw herself on the bed and grabbed the remote, turning on the tv and beginning to flip through the channels, her stomach flipping.

Dean rolled his eyes, but Sam looked mildly conflicted. "See you in a few hours," Sam told her softly. "You don't have to wait up."

She didn't dignify that with a response. Sam looked even more conflicted, and mildly hurt by the snub, but turned out and followed his brother to the car.

As soon as she heard the impala's rumble, Lea jumped out of the bed and over to Sam's laptop. She clicked open the history to the last address search and pulled up the cemetery location on a map. There was no way in hell they were going to keep her in this hotel room and away from her first hunt.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Another chapter! Can you guys tell my current place of employment has been running low on work? Well, in any case, I've got this done and I think I have an end in sight. Hope you enjoy!

Lea called a taxi and with the little money she had left, had the cab driver drop her off about two blocks down from the cemetery, at a little street full of shops. She had Oscar follow the car, and managed one glance in the rearview mirror to see the hellhound bounding easily right behind them. She quickly had to duck her head, though, because her eyes caused a reflective glow on the window of the car and the taxi driver flicked his eyes over in her direction in confusion. Thankfully, there was one restaurant still open on the street she had him stop at, so it didn't look suspicious.

Lea knew that down the street to the left of the way she was facing was the direction to the cemetery. She started on down the street, using the street lights while she could. Farther away from the restaurant, she risked reaching up and patting Oscar on the head while he trotted beside her.

She came up on the boys' car, parked in the woods outside of the chest high wall that surrounded the graveyard. Otherwise, the place itself was so dark she could hardly see a thing. She had grabbed a tiny handheld flashlight but wanted to find the boys first. Once she got there, would the brothers accept that they'd have to let her stay?

They had left the gate cracked open, so she was able to slip through and into the graveyard itself. The gravestones were all partially in the shade of a few trees scattered through the grounds. It wasn't a very large yard, and a few of the graves had fresh flowers and a wreath placed on them. A light was shining in one of the far corners, up under a particularly old tree, and Lea could hear the shoves and packed hits of shovels, grunts and a few aggravated comments from Sam and Dean. The roots of the tree above had wrapped themselves around the coffin they were attempting to dig up, making the process slow going and difficult.

"So this might be a first," Sam was saying, winded.

"The people who planted this damn tree might have to die after we get done here." Dean answered.

"Because they planted a tree over the grave?"

"Damn right."

"So inconsiderate. Why didn't they think about all the graverobbers that were going to come around 50 years later?"

"Shut up," Dean grunted, pushing his shovel into the ground with more force than he had been.

Slowly, Lea started walking up, a little nervous. Oscar made more noise than she was anticipating, even over the grass and the boys jumped into action, grabbing the sawed offs they had close by and hitching themselves out of the grave.

Oscar started growling, a low hum in the back of his throat that sounded like a chain being dragged over a concrete ledge, and Lea jumped back partially behind a smaller tree.

"Whoa whoa, guys, it's just me -" She began.

"Lea?" Sam asked, sounding shocked.

"Are you serious?" Dean asked, sounding less shocked and more pissed. "Come on." He threw the sawed off he had in his hand back down.

"I'm serious," Lea answered, figuring that coming on strong would make it less wimpy if she had to back down. "And now that I'm here, you're just going to have to deal with it. So what can I do to help?"

Dean rolled his eyes. "Grab the salt," He told her wearily. "We'll be able to bust in the lid of the casket pretty soon probably."

Lea was walking around to the other side of the grave where the boys had their supplies and jackets piled when Oscar started growling. Lea pushed her glasses up so that they sat on top of her head, and looked over to where the hellhound was. Oscar's muscles were knotted and he was hunkered down, hackles raised and the fur between his massive shoulder blades standing on end. It didn't look like he was focussed on anything, his head twitching almost imperceptibly in different directions.

The boys were slowly grabbing for the cans of salt they had.

"Lea," Sam began slowly, eyes scanning the graveyard. "Car. Now. Take the salt you have, throw it at anything that moves." Dean tossed her the keys, and she jerkily snatched them from the air.

Lea felt her heart rate picking up as she carefully watched Oscar's movements and began moving cautiously forward, back to the propped open gate.

"Might want to move a little faster," Dean told her. Lea glanced back, and could see Dean's breath come out in puffs as he spoke. She looked down and saw her own breath, and the sudden, full realization of what was occurring hit her before before she pivoted around on her heel and took off at a sprint.

Oscar snarled and snapped his jaws at something behind her, which startled her enough to make her muscles seize and she stumbled. Her knee smacked against the ground and she dug into it enough to almost recover and she wildly slipped and slid for a second before regaining her balance and continuing to run. As soon as she was upright however, something appeared in front of her face that made her skid to a stop again.

There was a man. He was ugly, thick, and brutish, with a wide, fat forehead and little eyes that were almost lost underneath it. He was balding, and had an expanding beer gut. His mouth hung open in a stupid, lax way, but in his eyes was an ignorant, all encompassing anger. His head, on one side, was bashed in and full of bloody lumps. Lea could see through him.

She took the salt she held in her hands and slung it at him, the white flakes falling in one fell sweep. He disappeared.

She heard the boys cracking the casket behind her, which seemed to distract the ghost from her long enough for her to keep running. It didn't last long, however. She felt huge hands much larger than her shoulder blades push her to the ground where she fell onto the can of salt. It dug into her stomach and she rolled away, making quick noises of pain.

"What," A voice spoke above her. "Are they defective?"

Lea looked up to see a short, stubby, dark headed man in a suit standing above her. He had slightly bug-ish eyes, but not in a necessarily repulsive way. King of Hell. Right. "Crowley?" She asked, incredulous. "What are you -" She lost her train of thought for a moment, stuttering off.

"Your guard dogs," Crowley explained, sounding particularly put out.

"There's nothing wrong with Oscar," Lea insisted. Crowley rolled his eyes.

"I was talking about the Winchesters." He answered, as if it should have been obvious. "I do believe," He continued, "That some nasty stuff is about to go down. Let's skidaddle, shall we?"

"What?" Lea responded, almost able to pick herself up onto her feet but unable to focus enough on the conversation to formulate a sufficient rebuttal.

"Let's take a trip." Crowley told her, stepping closer. Not sure she was fully aware of the situation, she was sure whatever this was had gone on quite long enough.

"SAM," She started screaming, "DEAN -"

The boys sharply turned toward her, still attempting to ward off the ghost. They caught a glimpse of Crowley settling a hand on Lea's shoulder with a smirk, and then they were gone.

"NO," Sam started toward them, to be met with the ghost who wrapped a hand around his throat and attempted to shove him aside.

Finding their drive to finish the case, they made quick work of the ghost after that, but it didn't change anything. Lea was gone.

Sam and Dean paced around the graveyard after filling the hole they had dug up. They grabbed their things viciously and were stomping with determination back to the impala when they heard a pitiful whine. It wasn't anything to sneeze at, but considering the source it may have been the smallest noise they had ever heard.

"Oscar?" Sam called, scanning the ground. Possibly, he thought, he could pick up disturbances (leaves scattering, possibly indentations in the soft dirt as Oscar walked) to track the hellhound's movements.

"Crowley left the hound?" Dean asked, oddly surprised. In answer, an icy cold nose stuck up under his shirt.

"Who knows," Sam answered sharply, already setting his teeth on edge.

"Listen," Dean swept over in front of Sam, lifting a hand and waiting till Sam walked into it. "Listen, we'll go back to the bunker and work up a quick summoning and figure out what's going on, okay? We can't get bent out a' shape like this."

"Like hell we can't," Sam muttered automatically. "Let's summon him here, Dean. We can't let this happen to Lea."

"We can't start up satanic rituals right next to where we just dug up bones, Sam." Dean reasoned. "Think smart about this. And don't go puttin' this on you: she can take responsibility for this, too."

"Why, because we let her come with us and then thought we could make her stay put in some motel room? I never should have let her."

"Yeah," Dean smirked quickly, unlocking the trunk of the impala and throwing their equipment inside.

"This isn't a joke, Dean." His little brother insisted, starting toward him.

"Sam, do you know how many times you got caught up in a hunt because you wouldn't do what you were told? Because I lost count years back. Now get in the car, we'll go to the basement so we can summon him in the circle, and we'll make the son of a bitch give us some answers."

Sam, ruffled, shrugged his shoulders a few times (loosening up muscles) and backed off. They let Oscar up into the back of the impala and started off, back to the motel to grab the rest of their stuff and then hitting the road on back to the bunker.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Hello again! Here's chapter 12! Hope you guys enjoy, and thanks to all the new followers. The italics in the chap are a flashback. Once again, if you would like to take the time to leave a review, I'd be eternally grateful! Also, thanks to RebelxPunk for pointing out the crazy formatting the first time I tried posting :/

* * *

All the way back to the bunker, Oscar alternated between whining and growling in the back seat. The boys were anxious and fidgety, and didn't pay Oscar much mind once they had decided his distress was probably out of concern for Lea. It took them two hours exactly to make it back to the bunker, and Sam slipped on his glasses to let Oscar out of the back.

"Whoa," He said suddenly. Dean looked up at him. "Oscar's… Not doing so well. Put your glasses on."

Dean did so, and glanced back. Oscar was hunkered down, bristled fur at the nape of his neck standing straight up in the folds of the fur covering his bulging muscles. His snout was snarled up and back, and he was salivating heavily around huge teeth. His eyes were glowing a bright, violent red and he looked more like a regular hellhound than the brothers had ever seen him.

"Hay boy," Sam began quietly. "It's alright. Come on, let's go out, okay?" His answer was a fluctuating growl, rising and falling in pitch but constant.

"You think it's just Lea being in danger that's sending him into beast mode?" Dean guessed.

"Probably. We need to fix this fast, or it looks like the hellhound's going to go berserk."

"What are we going to do with him in the meantime?" Dean asked. "Is he going to get worse, the longer this takes?"

"It'd make sense," Sam answered, hesitating to say anything else.

"So what? Stick him in a devil's trap before it gets worse and hope that Lea can bring him back?"

"What if she won't be able to bring him back, Dean?" Sam asked in response. "What if once he's gone there's no getting him back again?"

"Cross that bridge when it comes." Dean answered. They agreed to put him in a devils trap they hastily drew in Lea's room and then headed down to the basement where they began preparing to summon Crowley.

* * *

_"Lea, time to get up."_

_The girl sprawled on her bed sluggishly recognized her dad's voice._

_"Breakfast is ready."_

_"'Kay," she answered, finding it difficult to form words in response._

_"Don't fall back to sleep when I leave, okay?" He told her fondly. When he…_

_Suddenly, Lea bolted up. Her dad was walking down the hallway and she tripped over herself running to her door._

_"Dad," She called. The man at the end - tall, lanky, shoulders hunkered down like he was trying to fold in on himself, stopped and turned. "Did mom…" His shoulders fell further._

_"She… She's gone, sweetheart. Left this morning. She just - didn't want it to be too hard on you, okay?"_

_Lea felt an overwhelming sorrow sharply, but she didn't need to ask him to explain. She mocked her dad's position, hunkering her shoulders down but this time in shame, and nodded in understanding. Honestly, she couldn't have asked her mom to do something so difficult as to stay when her daughter was… like this. She tucked her head in to hide the tears welling up in her eyes - her stupid eyes - and backed away to shut her door softly._

_She'd hoped that she could have fixed herself before this happened. Everyone was just so defeated by now, though. Dad was really trying and he'd been counting on her mother to stay and help them both, but Lea couldn't expect her mom to try to deal with something so horrifying. She looked over in the corner by her dresser, where she had her cane and glasses, and quickly put the glasses on without looking at herself in the mirror. She might ask her dad later if he could take the mirror down._

_How could there ever be a cure for this?_

_How could she ever fix it?_

* * *

Lea had passed out from pain and panic (and maybe it was partly Crowley's doing) when the king of Hell grabbed her, and she awoke again in a dark room, badly propped up in an uncomfortable wooden chair. She was in a dark place, sitting to one side of a gruesome demon she recognized as Crowley's form. The king of Hell was reading papers in a folder, but he set them aside when he noticed that she was awake.

"Well, good morning! Or - night, or what have you." Crowley said, settling back to one side of his chair so he could look squarely at Lea.

"Why am I here?" Lea asked, trying to keep her voice from trembling too noticeably.

"I don't know how much the boys have told you about me, but one trait that I find absolutely undeniable about myself is curiosity. Hopefully, it's one of those… endearing qualities. In any case, when we first made our little discovery of each other and got acquainted, I was swamped. You know, being king and all." He leaned forward. "But now I've got all the time in the world, and I am dying to know all about you."

"All about me, or all about my eyes?" She asked.

"Caught me, darling, but you have to admit those beauties are mesmerizing."

Lea didn't respond. Unsure of her situation, whether or not she was in danger, what precisely the king of Hell wanted with her, and whether or not she was going to be able to provide it was currently more important than this sparring match Crowley apparently wanted. She wasn't a Winchester. The room Lea was in was dark, but didn't look especially threatening. She wasn't tied up, but then where would anyone expect her to go?

Crowley seemed to have caught on to the fact that she wasn't going to answer him. "Straight to business, then?" He asked, taking up a drink from the small, elaborate table beside his seat. "Tell me. What, precisely, are these eyes of yours capable of?"

"I can see… things." She answered.

"Well. Yes." He deadpanned.

"No, as in, I can see… I can see you, right now, as a demon."

"Not the meat suit at all?" He asked.

"Well, sort of, but your actual form is ghosting around it. Like… Like your human body is just a frame, which I can see, but inside I can also see yourself."

"Interesting." Crowley conceded. "What else can you see?"

"Everything." She answered simply. "Ghosts, your hellhounds, I could see that my dad was a werewolf even when he wasn't changed."

"I see." Crowley said, and then chuckled at himself. "That's all fascinating, but let's get down to the juicy bits, hm? How about… What else are you capable of?"

"What… else?" Lea asked. "I'm not capable of anything else."

"Nothing? Can't… sense when said things you see are approaching? Can't… Control said things once you see them?"

Lea shook her head slowly.

"Well." Crowley went silent for a moment. "Always room for improvement, I suppose. Last series of questions for today. How, precisely, was it done?"

"I… There was some formula. It was like water. He put it in my eyes and they changed. I don't know."

"Who is this 'he'?"

"An angel. A crazy angel. The other angels killed him."

"Of course." Crowley sounded a little aggravated. "Is the formula anywhere to be found?"

She suddenly realized that anything else she truthfully said would implicate Sam and Dean. So, instead of answering his question, she shrugged. "I don't even know what the formula was." She told him.

"Is it really possible that after spending weeks with the boy detectives, you still know nothing about it? That's why I sent you with them."

"You 'sent me'?" She asked. "No you didn't, I asked them for help."

"After your mummy sent you off?" Crowley asked in return, smug. Lea looked up at him in shock.

"What?" She asked.

"Well, now, this isn't to say that Momma Eyes would have done differently otherwise, but she may or may not have been given… a little nudge in a certain direction." Crowley grinned.

"What did you do to my mother?" Lea asked, sitting up a bit straighter.

Crowley rolled his eyes. "Don't get all miffed about it. There wasn't any loyalty there anyway: mummy had no special help the first time she walked out."

"That's not what this is about." Lea retorted, finding sudden surety. "Leave my mother out of this: that's all she's wanted."

"Yes," Crowley agreed. Lea got the feeling that he wasn't actually as calm and patient as he was portraying himself to be. "In any case, the point is that I can't believe that the Winchesters kept to themselves for once when a damsel in distress was plopped down at their doorstep. So. What do you know about this formula?"

He met her eyes and held her gaze strictly. Lea was so conflicted she could hardly think straight. Her natural tendency was to cooperate: causing extra trouble for herself in a situation where she was already helpless was not high on her list of to-dos. Crowley interpreted the pause she had taken as refusal to answer.

"Well, let's put you somewhere safe while you decide to cooperate, hm?" He said, then yelled, "Guard!" A door shrouded in shadow at the back of the room swung open, and a large black man walked in. His demon form crouched over his shoulders, creating a looming being who slowly stalked closer. "Escort little girl blue to her prepared quarters, if you please." Crowley said.

The guard bowed. "Yes, king." He said, and walked close enough to Lea to reach out and grab her arm before dragging her along with him. The grip on her arm was so tight and sudden that she jumped suddenly and stifled a scream. The man looked down at her with a smirk and kept walking. Eventually she was able to regain her footing and kept up with him down a dank, damp stone hallway. A little way down they were temporarily interrupted by a soul-wrenching screech that echoed to meet them, and Lea stiffened, terrified.

The demon who had her opened a door farther away and took her inside, closing her wrists in old manacles. Before he closed the door, he grinned and said, "Welcome to Hell," and then slammed it shut. She was enveloped in darkness.


End file.
